Bedtime Story (1964)

Two scam artists prey on women for their money. They clash in a Mediterranean hot spot. Will the cultured, high-class con artist come out on top, or will the rough small-change scammer rise to win the wager?

Director:

Ralph Levy

Writers:

Stanley Shapiro, Paul Henning

Stars:

Marlon Brando, David Niven, Shirley Jones

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Marlon Brando	...	Freddy Benson
David Niven	...	Lawrence Jameson
Shirley Jones	...	Janet Walker
Dody Goodman	...	Fanny Eubank
Aram Stephan	...	Andre
Parley Baer	...	Col. Williams
Marie Windsor	...	Mrs. Sutton
Rebecca Sand	...	Miss Trumble
Frances Robinson	...	Miss Harrington
Henry Slate	...	Sattler
Norman Alden	...	Dubin
Susanne Cramer	...	Anna
Cynthia Lynn	...	Frieda
Ilze Taurins	...	Hilda (as Ilse Taurins)
Francine York	...	Gina

Storyline

Benson is a Casanova who despises women and invents all sorts of tricks to bed them and leave them. His favorite one is going through Germany posing as an American GI of Teutonic extraction. Whenever he spots a girl he likes, he takes a Polarod picture of her house, knocks on the door waving the photo and pretending to be on a pilgrimage to this very cottage his grandmother so vividly described. It is an infallible system for a hit-and-run seduction. Benson seems content with his game until he meets Jameson, a real operator who has learned to combine sex with money. Jameson poses as an exiled prince and not only gets women to share his bed but also to bestow their jewels on him for the sake of the counterrevolution. Benson decides to corner Jameson's market on sex plus finance. A contest develops, and whoever wins will dominate a small Riviera resort as "King of the Mountain," the film's original title. Remade in 1988 as "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels."

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Plot Keywords:

romantic rivalry | hairy chest | emerald necklace | roulette | ballerina | 

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Taglines:

The Sin-tillating Capers of Two Cunning Con Men who Fleeced the Sexiest Chicks on the Riviera...until each decided to become king of the mountain !

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Genres:

Comedy

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Did You Know?

Trivia

Marlon Brando said that he found co-star David Niven so funny, he often broke into uncontrollable laughter during filming, thus ruining many takes. It was so bad that he would have to force himself not to look Niven in the eye during filming.

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Quotes

Freddy Benson: Master! O giver of knowledge. I've come to sit at your feet and learn. Teach me. Mold me. Polish me. I'm in your hands.
Lawrence Jameson: I wouldn't soil them on you.
Freddy Benson: Well, now, is that any way to talk to your partner?
Lawrence Jameson: By no stretch of the imagination will I associate myself with someone like you. You're crude.
Freddy Benson: Well, so is oil until you refine it into high octane gasoline. Up my octane, big daddy.

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Connections

Remade as Khel (1992)

User Reviews

True comedy with Brando as an outstandingly funny actor

Forget "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels"! That is a mere imitation and a poor one at that. This is the original and by far one of the most outstanding comedies on film.

There is no foul language, violence, gratuitous sex or any other artifice. Bedtime Story really relies on nothing more than a great script and outstanding actors. I have seen the movie many times since my childhood and I am happy to say that my children (both adults now) also share my views.

Just buy the DVD (freely available from the UK - why not the USA????? Shame, shame).

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

21 August 1964 (West Germany)

Also Known As:

Bedtime Story

Filming Locations:

Cannes, Alpes-Maritimes, France

Company Credits

Production Co:

Pennebaker Productions, The Lankershim Company

Technical Specs

Runtime:

99 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1